Yumi Miyamoto's Match of Love!
by xAstroBoyx
Summary: As far as Yumi Miyamoto was concerned, Shukichi Haneda was her ex-boyfriend, and had been for years. But what happens when he is a key witness to a hit-and-run case she has to deal with? Will this coincidental reunion spark old feelings? Follow Yumi as she comes to terms with her feelings for the man she thought she knew, and the man he'd secretly been all along. Please review!
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Hello everyone! ^^ It's been awhile since I've written a story. I took a break from Detective Conan for awhile and came back to see that Yumi-tan and Chukichi still don't have like.. any fanfics, (T_T) so naturally as a hardcore shipper of them, it was my job to help change that XD Also, I am sorry to anyone who may still be waiting for my "Yumi's Move is Shukichi's Checkmate" fanfic. I still may finish that someday if I feel motivated enough. But to kind of help get back into the swing of writing, here is a completely separate Yumi x Shukichi story! ^_^**

 **PLEASE READ: This story is written from the perspective that the events of file 847-849 or episode 730-731 never happened. I wanted to give my own take on their reunion after the breakup. Hopefully this isn't too similar to past stories I've written for them haha. Again, I'm not much of a writer, but since they have so few fanfics, I take it upon myself to do it. XD Also feel free to give me feedback! I love getting it whether bad or good lol.**

 **With all that out of the way, thank you and I hope you enjoy! ^^**

* * *

It had been a pretty overall uneventful day for traffic cop, Yumi Miyamoto. She had been patrolling the streets of Tokyo all day, and there wasn't a single crime or violation to be found. She was also all on her own today as her usual partner, Naeko Miike, was back at the office filing reports. She wouldn't have minded this fact as much, but not having someone to at least talk and gossip with made the day feel that much slower.

"Ughh I'm so bored! There's nothing to do!" Yumi exclaimed with a loud groan as she sat in the patrol car just waiting for something to happen.

She was tempted to call Miwako to get the latest news on how her relationship with Takagi was going to help pass the time, but she knew they were busy on a murder case right now.

Yumi silently chuckled to herself as she recalled some of the schemes she came up with in the past to help push those two together. There were the times when she tried to make Miwako jealous, like when she gave Takagi tickets to a magic show and pretended they were going on a date, or the time she and Takagi had to dress up as a married couple during a case and she flirted with him just to get a reaction from Miwako. Then there were the times she would trick Takagi into buying fancy jewelry for Miwako, when in actuality it was really meant for herself.

Despite it all, deep down Yumi had good intentions and genuinely just wanted to see them happy together. For some reason, she felt that teasing them seemed to fill some weird empty void within herself she couldn't quite explain. Now that they've been together for a while, it almost felt like she hadn't been able to mess with them much these days. The same went for Shiratori and Kobayashi-sensei, and inevitably Chiba and Naeko once he finally realized she was his first love.

"Dang it! All of them are in a relationship and I'm still alo-"

Yumi's body suddenly went stiff as she was overcome with a flood of memories about her long time ex-boyfriend, Shukichi Haneda.

" _Tsk, Chukichi, I haven't thought of that name in awhile.."_ She bitterly thought with a slight smirk.

It had been 3 years since the breakup. They had met in a subway back in her college days, and they dated for several years before she eventually dumped him. In the beginning, the relationship was going great, and Yumi was truly happy to be his girlfriend. They would go on dates at least once or twice a week, and she was in regular contact with him. But while he was a loving and affectionate boyfriend, he had an awful habit: he always kept her waiting or was too busy to spend time with her. Even though it irritated her to no end, he always knew how to make it up to her, whether it was with gifts or through his actions. Yumi could never seem to stay mad at him for long, so she tried to make things work.

However, as the years went on, it only got worse. Shukichi was growing more distant and only had time for a phone call every now and then. She was lucky if she could even go on a date with him anymore. She was starting to get fed up, so she gave him an ultimatum. She told him that she would be beginning her career as a policewoman, and that if they couldn't continue to have a future together, she'd have to breakup with him.

Shukichi was visibly distressed by this, so he gave her an envelope and told her to hold onto it until he collected all 7. Yumi was confused, but decided to trust him and wait for whatever the 7 things were. However, after waiting for what felt like forever, she couldn't take it anymore and ended it once and for all.

Even though it had been 3 years since these events went down, there was still a part of Yumi that couldn't bring herself to move on. Perhaps teasing the others about their relationships was how she coped with not having Shukichi in her life anymore.

"W-Well, whatever who needs him! What kind of man makes his lady wait for him all the time anyway?" Yumi muttered to herself angrily with her arms crossed. "I'm much better off without him!"

She sat in silence for a moment to recollect her thoughts. She knew she was lying to herself though she hated to admit it. "Oh, damn it he's just lucky I-"

"Yumi-kun!" A loud voice boomed from the computer in the patrol car that practically startled her out of her seat.

"Ah-M-Megure-keibu!" Yumi exclaimed in surprise as she tried to regain her posture.

"W-what is it?"

"We got a call about a hit-and-run. I know today has been pretty slow, so this should liven things up for you!"

Yumi grew a determined expression and a sense of relief to finally have something to do. "Of course! Where's the location?"

"It happened in front of a flat in Chateau Beika." The inspector responded.

Yumi's eyes widened and her heart felt like it was going to pop right out of her chest. The relief she had just felt a moment ago quickly died in an instant. Chateau Beika just so happened to be the same district where Shukichi's flat was located.

Yumi began to sweat nervously. "I-Inspector, surely there must be another office on duty who's not busy that coul-"

"That's an order, Yumi-kun! You're one of the only officers on duty who hasn't had anything to do yet today. Besides, this should be an easy one. I trust you'll be able to handle it, good luck!" The inspector said before quickly hanging up.

"W-wait!" Yumi shouted desperately at the computer just hoping in vain the inspector would somehow hear her pleas and let her off the hook for this one.

She gulped and let the situation sink in for a moment before finally realizing she really didn't have a choice. _"Damn it…let's just hope I don't have to see him.."_

When Yumi arrived at the scene, she remained in the patrol car for a moment with her face half hidden behind the steering wheel to assess the situation first to make sure Shukichi wasn't there.

" _Phew, okay good I don't see Chukichi and his stupid face anywhere. Now all I have to do is deal with this, make the report, and I'm home free!"_ She thought arrogantly with a smug grin.

As she stepped out of the patrol car, she noticed the victim of the damaged car was talking to someone, but this person was hidden behind the car. As she made her way to the scene of the crime, the mysterious person came into sight, and it was unmistakably the one she had dreaded seeing most. It was indeed her ex-boyfriend, Shukichi Haneda.

" _No! Not him! Why does it have to be him of all people?!"_ Yumi shouted in dismay internally as she begrudgingly continued approaching the scene.

She tried not to make eye contact with Shukichi, but curiously gave in and looked for a brief moment only to see Shukichi looking at her with his mouth wide open and a deep blush overtaking his face.

Yumi scowled in disgust and shifted her gaze quickly. _"Ugh, get a hold of yourself, Yumi-sama, keep it professional. Just take this damn report and act like you don't know him."_

"I'm responding to a call about a hit-and-run." Yumi said plainly and straight to the point while holding a notebook and pen.

Shukichi continued staring at Yumi in disbelief while the victim eagerly began to explain the situation.

"Oh thank goodness you're here! My car got totally wrecked!" the victim shouted anxiously.

Yumi stared intensely at her notebook trying not to appear interested. "Give me all the details, what happened?"

"I was turning left into the apartment complex parking lot, when all of a sudden this car came out of nowhere and hit the back of my car and sped off. It all happened so fast; I didn't get a good look at the person or what kind of model car it was."

Yumi begun jotting down notes and realized something didn't make sense. She groaned silently and looked up from her notebook and shot Shukichi a death glare.

"Then why is this guy here?" Yumi pointed at Shukichi condescendingly. "What does he have to do with this?"

Shukichi frowned at Yumi's act of pretending she didn't know who he was. He cleared his throat about to explain himself. "Ah, actually-"

"He's my witness!" The victim interrupted. "He claims he caught a glimpse of the suspects license plate number!"

"Is that so?" Yumi said with a now semi-intrigued expression. "If the car was going so fast the victim could barely make out the car model, how were you able to catch the license plate number?"

Shukichi smirked smugly. "Well, as you know, I have a very good memory. I'm the best in Japan, no, maybe the best in the world."

Yumi stared at Shukichi intricately for a moment before snapping out of it and placing her hands on her hips stubbornly. "Whatever, I don't know what you're talking about, but let's hear that license plate number then."

The victim stood and looked at Yumi and Shukichi with a confused look. "Erm, do you two know each other?"

"The license plate number!" Yumi cut the victim off loudly so Shukichi couldn't respond to that question.

"O-of course. It was 757XFM" Shukichi uttered softly.

"Alright, that's all I needed to know. I'll run the license plate number through the computer and we can identify the suspect and get them to reimburse you for the damages. Have a nice day." Yumi closed her notebook and began walking back towards the patrol car trying to keep up her somewhat professional demeanor.

"Thank you officer! And thank you, man! I sure was lucky you were there to witness it!" The victim shook Shukichi's hand gratefully, but Shukichi was trying to catch up with Yumi who was quickly trying to flee the scene.

"Seriously, I don't know what I would've done if you weren't-"

"Ah, it was nothing! Think nothing of it!" Shukichi shouted as he escaped the handshake and began running towards Yumi leaving the victim feeling more confused than earlier.

Yumi put the keys in the ignition and was about to step on the gas when Shukichi put his hand in the open driver side window.

"Yumi-tan, please wait!" Shukichi pleaded desperately.

"How many times have I told you to stop calling me that? I'm on duty, I can't waste my time with this now." Yumi scoffed.

"I'm sorry if I embarrassed you back there, but I couldn't help it! I haven't seen you since-"

"Since when? Since you realized you have more important things to do with your time then spend with me? Whatever, it's better this way! Now move, I have another scene to attend to!" she lied.

"Yumi-tan..that's not it at all..I-"

"Please just let me go, Chukichi." Yumi looked at him seriously and with a hint of hurt in her eyes.

Shukichi stared at her pained expression and removed his hand slowly. "Okay.."

With that, Yumi zoomed off and left Shukichi standing there feeling a heavy guilt on his shoulders. _"I think it's time I finally explain things to her."_

* * *

 **And there is Chapter 1! ^^ I didn't want to do this fanfic in chapters at first, but then I figured it would make things easier for people who want to read at their own leisure and come back to chapters instead of having to remember where they left off. haha. Also hopefully the characters aren't too OOC. I think aside from pacing, writing perfectly in character is one of my hardest things to deal with when writing haha.**

 **Anyways, please review if you want to give me some feedback! I'd appreciate it! Thanks! Hope you're liking it so far XD**


	2. Chapter 2

**Alright here's chapter 2! I think it should be mentioned one more time that this is my take on Yumi and Shukichi's reunion even though certain elements are true to canon events. The motivation for this story was based on episode 427 when Yumi first mentioned Shukichi, albeit indirectly XD I really wanted this story to be focused on Yumi acting all standoffish and hiding from him like she did in that episode I mentioned. I mean she literally bought a face mask and wore it to hide so he wouldn't recognize her lmao. I love Yumi so much lol.**

* * *

Later that evening, Yumi returned to HQ and finishing filing her reports for the day and was headed to the break room where Sato, Takagi, Naeko, and Shiratori were all laughing and enjoying themselves.

"Ah, Yumi-san, you're finally done huh? How did it go being solo today?" Naeko politely asked while offering her a coffee.

Yumi sighed but decided not to let her emotions show too much. "It was alright, I kind of wish you could've been with me though." She said with a soft smile while accepting the coffee.

"I know I'm sorry, Yumi-san, I was so bored around the office. I wish I could've been with you too, but I had a lot of paperwork and reports to catch up on. Did anything interesting happen?" Naeko asked curiously.

Yumi sipped her coffee and felt a trickle of sweat fall from the side of her face as she replayed the whole run in with her ex-boyfriend back in her head. She really didn't want to get everyone invested in her drama, so she decided to play it cool.

"Eh, no not really. I just had to deal with some annoying pest earlier." Yumi said rather coldly.

"Oh, really? I'm sorry to hear that, Yumi-san. Well, hopefully tomorrow we can go back to being partners and have a better day." Naeko added with an encouraging smile. "And think of it this way, you'll probably never have to see that pest again."

Yumi forced a nervous smile. "Y-yeah.."

All of a sudden, Chiba entered the room, which caused Naeko to bolt behind Yumi and hide anxiously.

"Hey guys! How about that case huh? I still can't believe that woman who killed that man was actually secretly in love with him the whole time. I was so sure she was innocen-" he cut himself off and turned his attention to Yumi.

"Ah, Yumi-san! You're back! How did the solo patrolling go?" He said cheerfully while remaining completely oblivious to Naeko's presence behind her.

Yumi stared at him with a dumbfounded expression. "Um..It was fine, I guess." She said apathetically. She turned and looked at Naeko who was clinging to her desperately.

"Well that's good." He smiled and made his way over to Takagi, Sato, and Shiratori. "So what about you guys? What are your plans after work?"

Naeko lowered her hat and stormed out of the room trying to hide the fact she was clearly distressed by his sudden appearance and lack of concern or care for her.

The sound of the door slamming got Chiba's attention.

"W-who was that? Was it something I said?" he asked completely obliviously.

Yumi crossed her arms and sighed with annoyance. "Tsk, why don't you go catch up with her and ask her yourself, you dunce."

From the body language and tone in Yumi's voice, Chiba suddenly became overwhelmed with guilt and felt obligated to take her advice.

"R-right." And with that he left to look for the girl he unintentionally had been ignoring and emotionally hurting for months now.

The room grew quiet for a moment after Yumi's intervention before everyone gathered around her.

"Geez, he still hasn't realized?" Sato chimed in.

"Nope, it would appear not. If I were her I'd just give up and move on. There have to be better fish in the sea out there." Yumi said with her arms still crossed.

Takagi interjected, "Well, Chiba is just a bit slow with romance. I'm sure he'll come to the realization soon, he just lacks confidence and doesn't think he stands a chance with anyone." He said scratching his neck nervously trying not to talk badly about his friend behind his back.

Shiratori looked deep in thought before finally breaking his silence. "I know how it feels to be a complete fool in romance. Looking back to the days where I thought Sato-san was my girl of destiny because she resembled Kobayashi-sensei makes me feel so guilty. Unlike Chiba-kun who can't recognize his love from childhood, I had my childhood love mixed with someone else and spent time perusing the wrong woman while selfishly disregarding her feeling for Takagi-kun."

Takagi and Sato looked at each other and then back at Shiratori somewhat awkwardly hoping not to reopen old wounds.

Shiratori smiled and put his hand on Takagi's shoulder. "Don't worry, you know those days are long over. You and Sato-san are a perfect pair, I'm genuinely happy for you two."

Takagi smiled admirably. "Thank you, Shiratori-san."

Yumi watched as these events were unfolding and felt nostalgic. She couldn't help but miss the days of klutzy bumbling Takagi who couldn't get Sato to notice him romantically no matter how hard he tried, and her own manipulative schemes that more often than not were meant as pranks to keep him from progressing with her. Sometimes she did try to give them a nice friendly push, but usually it would backfire. Shiratori on the other hand was someone who she also used for her own personal gain sometimes.

As she reminisced, she felt a sad smile creep on her face. _"I'm so immature. They've all grown and earned happiness, and I'm just living in the past and remaining the same old tease.. No wonder I'm so bitter.."_

"Hey, Yumi?"

Yumi was interrupted from her thoughts as she realized the room had cleared out except Sato who was now looking at her with slight concern.

"Ah, w-what is it, Miwako?" she asked dazed not realizing she had zoned out for a few minutes.

"Weren't you listening? We're inviting you to dinner with us! It'll be me, Takagi-kun, Shiratori-kun, and Kobayashi-sensei! You in?"

Yumi paused with hesitation. "So, it's a couple's thing?"

Sato smiled hoping to convince her. "Well, technically I suppose you could call it that, but that's okay! You're still welcome to join us!"

"Thanks, but I'll pass. I've got other things to do tonight." Yumi lied again trying to hide the emotions she'd been consumed by.

"Well okay suit yourself. Ah, but hey Yumi?" Sato asked just as Yumi was about to leave the room.

"What?" Yumi turned and asked.

"If you ever want to do another singles party, Takagi-kun and I can go to be your wingmen to help you out!" Sato said with a somewhat nervous smile already knowing Yumi would likely decline the offer.

Yumi chuckled with a stern expression. "Ha ha, yeah right Miwako, I'm not that desperate. Besides, I only went last time to get drunk. I don't need a boyfriend right now. There's a reason I haven't moved on from my last one."

Sato's eyebrow raised confused by Yumi's wording. "You _haven't_ moved on from your last one?"

Yumi blushed defensively. "What? No no, I meant there's a reason I haven't had a boyfriend _since_ my last one because he made me _not_ want to deal with relationships! Besides, if I really wanted I could've moved on a long time ago, I just choose not to! Yumi exclaimed in an extremely flustered state almost making her case worse.

Sato stood with wide eyes taken aback by Yumi's sudden defensive attitude, but smiled at her friend reassuringly. "O-oh okay, sorry I misunderstood Yumi. Well have a good night with whatever you have going on tonight then." Sato playful nudged Yumi as she exited the room.

"Y-yeah. You too." Yumi said blankly as she was oddly mesmerized watching Sato regroup with Takagi and Shiratori as they were happily chatting about their dinner plans.

"Geez…" Yumi uttered softly.

* * *

Yumi parked her car and made her way up the stairs to her apartment. It had just been one of those days she wanted to forget, but for some reason she was still internally struggling with jealousy due to Takagi and Sato's dinner date plans with Shiratori and Kobayashi, but more importantly, she couldn't stop thinking about her encounter with Shukichi earlier.

" _Hmph, I don't need to think about him anymore, I only ran into him by coincidence, I was just doing my job. Besides, it's not like he's tried to contact me once since we broke up, so I don't know why he acted like he cared.."_ Yumi pouted angrily as she continued up the stairs while fumbling in her purse looking for the keys to her apartment.

As Yumi rounded the corner that led to her room, she only had a moment to react before letting out a startled scream and falling to the ground as none other than Shukichi Haneda was standing right there by her door waiting for her.

"Ah, s-sorry, Yumi-tan! I didn't mean to surprise you like that!" Shukichi said apologetically while offering her his hand to help her up.

Yumi rejected his offer and slapped his hand away. "Psh, yeah right you didn't mean to surprise me, you came to my place uninvited, what did you expect?" She said in an irritated tone while getting up and brushing herself off. "Geez, how long were you waiting here anyways?"

Shukichi looked at his watch. "Only 3 minutes and 12 seconds. As memory serves, you always come home at precisely 9:18 PM on Thursdays, so I wanted to beat you to it." He said with a somewhat flirty smirk.

Yumi crossed her arms and chuckled in a somewhat amused yet irritated way. "Wow, that's really creepy, Chukichi. But I gotta say I'm surprised you actually were willing to wait for me for once. Hope I didn't take up too much of your precious time."

Shukichi took note of her stubbornly unpleasant demeanor and knew he couldn't exactly blame her for reacting the way she had all these years. He was starting to realize he needed to be much more straightforward and open with her if they were ever going to patch their relationship and move forward into the future.

"Anyways more importantly, what the heck are you doing here?" Yumi asked straight to the point.

Shukichi again brushed off Yumi's impatient attitude and continued. "There are several things I really need to talk to you about, so I was hoping you would accompany me to Ramen Ogura to discuss matters further. Of course, I'll be treating." He added knowing that was all he had to say to convince her.

Yumi stared at Shukichi still bothered by his unexpected visit, but all the while she was overcome now with a certain level of intrigue wondering what he had to say.

"Fine, you're just lucky I'm starving. Give me a minute to change." She said while unlocking the door to her apartment and leaving Shukichi waiting for her outside.

After a few minutes, Yumi stepped back out wearing casual clothes. She didn't want to overdo it since she wasn't exactly trying to impress her ex-boyfriend.

Nonetheless, it was still enough to attract Shukichi's attention as he blushed and smiled sincerely. "You look really beautiful, Yumi-tan."

Yumi unknowingly blushed at his compliment but tried to hide it once she felt it written all over her face. "Ah, whatever it's nothing special." She began strutting ahead of him so he couldn't see. "Let's just go."

* * *

 **Oh snap what's Chukichi up to? Hehe sorry I had to end it on a cliffhanger like that XD**

 **As always, reviews are appreciated! ^^**


	3. Chapter 3

**Okay here's Chapter 3 ^^ I really loved the ramen guy from episode 827-828 who totally shipped Yumi and Chukichi together, so naturally I had to include him in my story hehe. Seriously, Yumi's all, "HE'S MY _EX_ MY _EX!_ " (Which btw, Yumi, you aren't foolin' anyone XD) And Katsumasa is just all, "Oh is that so? What a shame, you made such a nice couple." Like ahhhh my heart T/T lol. I really want more of Yumi and Chukichi's past from when they were dating 10 years ago. Or now in the current timeline, since we know they are basically back together (And sleeping together as of chapter 1015 hehehe.) They could go out for ramen, and Katsumasa will be like, "Ah, so that breakup sure didn't last long, huh Yumi-chan?" And she'll sit there with an angry blush and Chukichi will be confused but chuckle with a blush or something**

 **Ah, anyways! lol I could headcanon for days XD Let's just get on with the chapter lol**

* * *

As Yumi and Shukichi arrived at Ramen Ogura, they were instantly greeted to a familiar face.

"Ahhh! Yumi-chan and her boyfriend with the round glasses! Long time no see!" Katsumasa Ogura, the owner of the restaurant boasted loudly.

Yumi hid her face in embarrassment and gritted her teeth while whispering. "Ugh, why the hell did you have to choose the place we went to all the time when we dated?"

Shukichi waved politely at Katsumasa and reassured Yumi as they made their way to their table. "It'll be okay, Yumi-tan, I know how much you used to love this place."

Yumi followed behind Shukichi while still trying to keep a low profile. "Tsk, yeah right, you're the one who always insisted on coming here." She silently muttered loud enough for Shukichi to hear, but decided not to waste any more breath arguing further as they made it to their seats.

Katsumasa approached their table with a friendly smile. "So! It's great to see you two again! I haven't seen you in ages, what's kept ya?"

Yumi sunk in her seat and sighed with a hand covering her face. She knew it would be awkward to explain that they were broken up, yet together on what looked like a date. She decided to put her pride aside and just get this over with.

"I guess we've both just been busy with other things.." she shrugged with a half assed smile as she regained her posture.

Shukichi looked at Yumi somewhat impressed she didn't immediately exclaim he was her ex-boyfriend now.

"Ah, Is that so? Well what'll it be? The usual?"

"Yes, I'll get the yakisoba." Shukichi said happily. "Yumi-tan, are you going to get the miso like usual?"

Yumi rolled her eyes "Sure, whatever." _"tsk, why does he have to act like such a smartass."_

"Haha! Things never change, I'll have them right out for you! Katsumasa said cheerfully.

There were a few moments of silence as Katsumasa walked away. Shukichi fidgeted with his chopsticks and glanced nervously at Yumi who was sitting with her fist resting on her cheek unamused as if she was waiting for him to break the awkward tension first.

Shukichi cleared his throat. "Do you still have the envelope I gave you back then, Yumi-san?" he asked rather abruptly.

Yumi perked up by the sudden question. "No 'tan' huh? This must be something really important.. Yes, I still have that useless envelope. Why?"

"Oh, good. I was just curious. Knowing you the way I do, I half expected you to have thrown it away or something. I should thank you for actually hanging on to it all these years." He said with a faint smirk on his face adding to the suspense.

Yumi raised an eyebrow confused and taken aback by where he was going with this and why he was acting so smug about it. "W-wait why? What the heck is that envelope even supposed to mea-"

"Here you are! Enjoy!" Katsumasa interrupted appearing with the ramen.

"Thank you, Ogura-san! It looks great as always!" Shukichi beamed excitedly.

Yumi's face fell with frustration. She glanced at Shukichi from the corner of her eye who had already begun scarfing down his ramen. _"What are you hiding from me, Chukichi…If you would've just been honest with me from the beginning.. We could have just avoided all this drama..Please just tell me what's really been going on with you.."_

After several moments, Shukichi put his bowl down to catch his breath. "Ahh this place has the best ramen, right Yumi-tan?"

Yumi quickly looked away and switched to a bored expression again. "Hmm, I guess so."

Shukichi detected the subliminal hurt in her voice and was overcome with immense guilt. _"Oh my precious, Yumi-tan..I always hated making you wait for me..yet it's all I ever make you do. I have to put a stop to it right now."_

"So um…back to my previous question, I was asking that question because it was going to lead up to what I really brought you here to talk about."

Yumi's opened one eye showing slight interest. "Oh wow, you're actually going to tell me something instead of leaving me in the dark for once? I don't know whether to be impressed or annoyed if this turns out to be another game. I mean, after all if we hadn't stumbled into each other earlier, you probably wouldn't have even thought to contact me and I'd still be waiting for nothing." She said bitterly.

Shukichi sat for a moment as if to think of the best way to explain himself. "Ah, well it is true that our little chance meeting today did reignite my desire to explain things to you. The reason I haven't attempted reaching out to you sooner was because I decided to take our little.." He paused for a moment since he couldn't bring himself to say the words 'break-up'. "-time apart from one another as an opportunity to devote to collecting the seven things, and since I'm extremely close to obtaining them all, I figured now was the perfect time to finally tell you. But enough of that, no more games, Yumi-tan. I'm going to be completely honest and tell you everything about myself that I kept secret from you back then." Shukichi said seriously.

"Fine, just spit it out then." Yumi said with her legs crossed and her fingers tapping impatiently on the table just wanting the build up to end.

Shukichi cleared his throat. "Alright. The truth is, I am a professional shogi player, and the seven things I was collecting were the seven shogi titles in an attempt to impress you."

Yumi blinked in confusion. "…Shogi?"

He continued. "Yes. Do you remember when we were dating, you were really impressed by that sumo wrestler, Tehno, for winning all six basho titles in a row?"

Yumi, still hesitant, looked at Shukichi skeptically. "I…guess? That was ages ago, I was a lot more needy and easily impressed back then. In any case, what's that got to do with anything?"

Shukichi took note of her confused reaction and tried to explain himself fully without skipping any details to help her better understand his intentions.

"Well, I had it in my head that you'd be really impressed if I won all seven shogi titles for you in secret. I was planning to tell you the truth about my profession a lot sooner into our relationship, but then you said whoever Tehno's future bride is would feel like such a queen being with a champion like him, so I made it my goal to make you feel the same. That's why I kept it hidden. I wanted it to be a surprise, but I understand how you thought I was sneaking around behind your back." He said remorsefully.

There was a brief silence before he continued. "Yumi-tan, I hope you know I would never leave you. Even now, my objective is still the same. I'll always love you with all my heart, and I want nothing more than to make you feel like a queen." He said while boldly placing his hand on top of hers. "I'm sorry I haven't exactly been the champion I hoped to be for you."

Yumi stared deep into Shukichi's eyes with an immense blush consuming her face. She looked like she had a lot to say, but all the words were sucked from her face. "I…" she looked down at his hand on hers, and after several moments of contemplation, she slowly retracted her hand away.

"Chukichi…I.. slow down, this is a lot to take in. So, you were secretly playing shogi all that time? That's why you were late to practically all our dates and not telling me things about yourself? I-I thought you hated making me wait, I don't get why you thought keeping it a secret knowing it would make me less trusting of you would impress me instead of just telling me.." Yumi looked down fighting the emotions she had been bottling up for years. "I felt so ignored and pushed aside without understanding why.." She turned her head to avoid making eye contact.

Shukichi moved closer and gently placed his hand on her back in an attempt to comfort her. "Yumi-tan..I-"

"Oh wow! it's Taiko Meijin!" a young voice boomed from behind their table.

Yumi and Shukichi were both startled out of their intimately close contact and turned to look at the source of the unexpected interruption.

"I can't believe it's you! Could I have your autograph?" the kid happily exclaimed while holding out a piece of paper and pen, obviously unaware of the moment they'd just ruined.

"Uhm…sure." Shukichi said nervously while noting Yumi's perplexed reaction.

"H-here you are." Shukichi said awkwardly while handing the autograph to the fan.

"Thank you, Taiko Meijin! You are my idol; I look up to you so much! I'll treasure this forever!" The kid said while leaving.

There was an awkward silence between Yumi and Shukichi after that sudden exchange that killed the emotional mood from a few moments ago. Yumi face palmed in disbelief. " _Taiko Meijin_? So what, you're famous or something now too?"

Shukichi spoke uneasily. "Um.. yes that was another point I was about to bring up-"

"And what about the envelope? Are you finally going to tell me what was in it?" she bluntly asked before he could finish.

"Ah yes the envelope, perhaps it's best we continue our conversation back at your place for me to explain that part.." Shukichi looked and noticed Yumi had hardly touched her ramen.

"But please take your time and eat before we leave, I don't want you going hungry.." Shukichi said with concern.

Yumi sighed and picked her chopsticks up. "Fine..but since you're paying I'm gonna eat as much as I want."

Shukichi chuckled placing his hand on his cheek while looking at Yumi lovingly. "I wouldn't have it any other way, Yumi-tan."

The atmosphere grew quiet and peaceful in the final minutes they spent at Ramen Ogura. He knew it wouldn't last forever since there was still a lot to talk about down the line, but he was enjoying the moment while it lasted.

* * *

 **Alright sorry to end this one kind of abruptly, but the next chapter will be a lot more heavy on the conversation and whatnot, so bear with me XD Hope you liked it! Please review! Thanks ^_^**


	4. Chapter 4

**Okay so here's Chapter 4. This is the longest chapter so far. I made it longer since this one is very heavy on the conversation with Yumi and Chukichi, and i'm really hoping it's not too OOC. Haha. Well, here comes the drama! XD**

* * *

The drive back to Yumi's apartment had been relatively quiet. Shukichi could feel the tension in the air, so he would periodically take quick glances to observe Yumi's expressions, but she had been deeply lost in thought just staring out the window. He understood she was probably still just taking in all the information she'd just learned and trying to make sense of it and figuring out how to feel about it. It wasn't like she was just going to accept everything in one night, and he realized that.

" _I'll respect whatever Yumi-tan says. Looking back, I was a fool for keeping things from her. I know she's waited a long time for me to collect the seven shogi titles, so I have to be able to wait however long it takes for her to accept the truth about me so we can continue on in our relationship. I only hope it's not too late and she's actually willing to take me back.. even if I don't deserve her.."_ Shukichi's face fell as that last sentence crossed his mind because he knew the possibility of remaining Yumi's ex-boyfriend still existed.

Yumi detected the despair running through Shukichi's mind as she caught sight of his saddened reflection in the window. She mentally sighed knowing to a degree she was being a bit too harsh on him. As she was reflecting on everything Shukichi told her at Ramen Ogura, she was beginning to find his actions admirable and flattering, but at the same time she couldn't help feeling lied to all those years ago.

" _Alright Chukichi, i'll try to ease up on you, but not until you tell me about the envelope.."_ Yumi thought to herself as they made it back to her apartment.

Shukichi got out of the car and quickly went over to Yumi's side to open the door for her.

Yumi rolled her eyes, but remembered to heed her own advice she just gave herself. "Thanks, Chukichi.." she said with a touch of sincerity.

"Of course." Shukichi smiled while holding his hand out.

Yumi looked at Shukichi and sighed. "…Whatever." She uttered while taking his hand, but for only a moment as she stepped out of the car. She couldn't stand feeling incapable of doing simple things for herself, even if it was meant to be a polite gesture.

Shukichi followed behind Yumi as she began walking with a hint of urgency trying to make it to her apartment before he did. He took note of her body language and could tell she was forcing herself to act this way. He tilted his head and added a sprint to his step to keep up with her as he pondered what was going through her mind.

"Y-Yumi-tan, wait up what's the rush?" Shukichi exclaimed from behind as he chased her up the stairs.

Yumi remained silent as she arrived at her door and began unlocking it. Shukichi caught up with her and rubbed his neck anxiously since he wasn't sure how she'd react to what he had to say.

Yumi kicked her shoes off and entered the kitchen. "Alright give me a second to find the envelope, hell only knows where I put it.." Yumi said as she began digging through old magazines she kept on her kitchen table.

As Shukichi entered behind Yumi, he took this moment to observe her apartment as he was taking his shoes off as well. Everything looked almost exactly the same from when he'd last been over about three years ago. Yumi was a pretty predictable person, so he hadn't expected much change.

As he was walking around, suddenly something caught his eye. _"Huh? What's that?"_ He thought as he discreetly moved closer. It was a framed photograph of himself and Yumi from when they first started dating. Yumi had such a beautiful glow in her smile as she looked at him lovingly while clutching his arm, and he was smiling at her so with a blush on his face. They looked so happy and in love, like they didn't have a care in the world. They had each other and that's all they needed.

Shukichi blushed immensely as he looked at the photo. His eyes began to drift at the other photos she had framed on the same shelf, and he noticed they all looked like they had been taken fairly recently. Several of them were of Yumi and her fellow police colleagues with the current year dated, and the other one was Yumi and her best friend, Miwako Sato, that looked like it had come from a festival that was held in Tokyo only a few months ago.

Shukichi continued staring at the photographs dumbfounded while still blushing as the realization hit him like a ton of bricks. _"Y-Yumi-tan..there's a reason you kept this..you-"_

Yumi snuck up behind Shukichi and picked the photograph up and set it face down. "Geez, stop being so nosy. I've been doing some decorating, and I've been meaning to get rid of that one.. Now enough of that, you got some explaining to do!" She said with a slight blush while waving the envelope in his face in an attempt at changing the subject.

Shukichi's jaw dropped slightly as he stared intently at Yumi, completely baffled at the thought of her keeping a photo of them still around her place after all these years, especially since she'd been so adamant that she was over him. He couldn't pass the opportunity to pretend like this hadn't happened, so he decided to get playful with her.

"No no, I think it's _you_ who has some explaining to do, Yumi-tan. There's no way you'd keep this photo up for three years after we 'broke up'." He said adding quotations with his fingers while smirking.

Yumi's face got red. "I-I was just lazy that's all! You know me, I don't really change things around here much." She began to sweat frantically.

"Is that so? Is that why all your other photos have been taken recently?" he pointed to her photos while still smirking smugly.

Yumi anxiously bit her quivering lips knowing he had her cornered. There really was no explanation except for the obvious. She was about to admit the truth, but at the last second felt a lie choke up out of her instead.

"W-whatever don't flatter yourself, Chukichi. It's not like I kept that photo displayed to look at you or anything, I just really looked cute 10 years ago and didn't wanna throw it away." She said in a cocky yet obviously forced manner. "But never mind that, please just let's get back to the task at hand.." She said visibly still embarrassed as she held the envelope to cover her cheeks that were still hot red.

Shukichi felt disappointed at Yumi's lie, but still found it cute she was trying so hard to cover herself up when he didn't even need to use deductive reasoning to see through her. He decided to cut her a break, but he would never forget this with his perfect memory.

"Alright, whatever you say Yumi-tan. Though I must agree you were really cute back then, and still are just as cute to this day." He smiled sincerely hoping his compliment would make her feel more comfortable and not cornered anymore.

Yumi blushed, but scoffed it off. "You don't have to suck up to me all the time you know, Chukichi."

Shukichi's face lit up. "But it's true! In fact, I have a photo of you from years ago that I carry with me as a good luck charm for my shogi matches. I never lose when I have it, so your cute charm never fails!" Shukichi said with a flirtatious wink as he pulled the photo out of his jacket pocket to show her.

Yumi looked confused as she took the photo from his hand. It was a photo of her smiling with a peace sign while wearing the heart locket necklace Shukichi bought for her when they first started dating. "Oh my gosh you're such a dork, you seriously use this as a good luck charm? And you just happen to have it on you at all times?" Yumi blushed stubbornly at this new revelation.

"Of course! It helps remind me what I'm doing all this for in the first place." He said while looking at her affectionately.

"Oh my gosh stop being so sappy!" Yumi said as she slapped his shoulder in a playful manner. She couldn't fight the blush and smile that engulfed her face, so she turned the other way and started heading for the living room. She coughed and tried to regain her composure. "Anyways, we're getting distracted, lets just get back to the envelope." Yumi said authoritatively as she sat down with her legs crossed.

Shukichi sat on the couch opposite to the one Yumi took and felt a drop of sweat trickle down his face. He knew she wasn't going to like what he was going to say. "Okay, about the envelope.. there's something about it that I need you to understand."

"What." Yumi said bluntly as a statement opposed to a question.

"I know you're not going to be happy, but I need you to keep holding onto it until I get all seven." He said while avoiding eye contact since he knew she'd be angry.

"Chukichi, seriously?! Why the hell can't you just tell me! I thought! -" Yumi stood from her seat and began to yell before he cut her off.

"Please Yumi-tan, I know it's frustrating, but I am super close. You've waited for me this long. Besides I have six of them now, and I made a promise to my late stepbrother, Kohji Haneda.. that I would 'stick to the plan.' And that's what I intend to do."

Yumi's face fell for a moment and she looked at Shukichi with sympathy at the words 'late stepbrother'. " _'Kohji Haneda'_? But, you never mentioned a stepbrother to me once in all the years we dated. And that's bold of you to assume I've been waiting for you this long. Who's to say I haven't gone to my fair share of singles parties to move on from you! You'd be surprised to know I've had plenty of opportunities to stop _waiting_ for you, you know." Yumi said smugly with arms folded stubbornly.

Shukichi disregarded her attempts at lying about moving on. "Well, I've kept a lot of things about myself private from you, but now I know it's not good to withhold information, so yes I had a stepbrother and two biological siblings, Shuichi Akai and Masumi Sera."

"You have siblings too? Then why do you all have different last names? H-how the heck am I supposed to take anything you say seriously? You have so many identities and lives I'm so confused!" Yumi shouted with confusion.

"Well, I was born Shukichi Akai, but when my father passed away, I took on my mother's last name, Sera. But eventually I went on to live with my stepbrother and took on Haneda as a last name." Shukichi said almost sadly as he was reflecting on his past.

Yumi looked at Shukichi now feeling a weight of guilt on her shoulders as she had no idea he had experienced so many losses. "Y-you lost your father too? I-I'm sorry, Chukichi.." She paused for a moment to collect her thoughts. "I don't understand, why did you hide all this from me? Why did you think it was a better idea to withhold information from the person you are supposed to love and trust more than anyone? You know, you could have told me about all this when we dated, I would've tried comforting you.." Yumi said compassionately while looking at him with slightly dejected eyes.

"I know..I just didn't want to burden you with it. Back when we dated, seeing your smile and making you happy made me forget all those things I've been through. I'm sorry, Yumi-tan. Truly I am." He said with guilt knowing she was right to feel upset.

Shukichi walked closer to Yumi and took the envelope from her hand. "Yumi-tan, please. I'm begging you to trust me and be patient for just a little bit longer. I've never loved anyone the way I love you, and I really want to fulfill what I swore I'd do." He handed the envelope back to her and held onto her hand as she took it. "After all, men don't like to go back on their word." He smiled.

Yumi's eyes widened deeply as she again felt at a loss for words. She had learned so much about the man she had met on the subway one fateful day a decade ago in just one night, and so much of it was so unexpected she didn't know what he'd say next. Although she knew she still had a lot of thinking to do, just the sheer look of determination and fire in Shukichi's eyes reassured her that he was serious about whatever he had planned for the envelope.

"Okay fine Chukichi, you win. I guess I have no choice but to keep waiting since apparently I'm pretty good at that." She said bitterly yet in an almost heartfelt way.

"Thank you, Yumi-tan, this really means everything to me." Shukichi said happily as he began heading for the door and putting his shoes back on. "I really do hate asking you to wait for me again, but hopefully someday you'll fully understand my intentions."

As Shukichi opened the door to leave, he turned back dramatically to get his final word in. "Besides, now that you know the truth about my shogi career and the seven titles I'm trying to collect, it shouldn't be too hard to figure out what my envelope might contain." Shukichi said with a confident smile.

Yumi stood with a perplexed look on her face from the foreshadowing of Shukichi's last statement. Rather than demand answers from him like she normally would, she shifted her gaze to the ground as she began pondering what he could've meant. Shukichi smiled at Yumi knowing his words were working in the way he'd hoped as he firmly closed the door behind him.

Yumi remained by her doorway for a few moments just reflecting on everything from this day. She gradually moved to her bedroom feeling overwhelmed with a sudden urge to do all the digging she could on Shukichi to find out how she could've missed everything involving his supposed "fame".

" _If Chukichi's really all that famous, shouldn't I have heard something about it somewhere at least once?"_ Yumi thought curiously. She sat by her desk and logged on to her computer. She typed Shukichi's name in the web browser with slight amusement.

"Heh, maybe he's only famous in some small nerd community in Japan or something. I know he got a signature from some kid at the ramen place today, but I mean how popular could a guy like Chukichi-EHHHHH?!-"Yumi exclaimed in shock as more than 100,000 results popped up on the screen.

Yumi's hand began shaking on the mouse while her eyes rapidly wandered every corner of the screen as she began taking in the full velocity of all the news headlines and images of her now undeniably famous ex-boyfriend. Many of the images depicted Shukichi dressed in kimonos with stern expressions on his face with what appeared to be his shogi opponents he'd defeated looking disappointed by their losses in the background. As she scrolled, her attention was caught by a blog titled, "Taiko Meijin Fangirl Page!" that was plastered with hearts and kissy face emojis.

"What the hell.." Yumi scoffed with a hint of jealousy. The blog was full of photos that were obviously photoshopped of Shukichi with random fangirls who looked mostly underage. Despite being annoyed, she couldn't resist the urge to read some of the posts.

" _Taiko Meijin is so gorgeous! I want him to have my babies! :D"_

" _Taiko Meijin needs to leave whoever he's with cuz she doesn't deserve him!"_

" _OMG He's flawless! Anyone who'd make this sweetie wait isn't worth it! Be with me, TAIKO MEIJIN AHHHHH! :DDDD"_

Yumi gritted her teeth angrily. She couldn't take it anymore, so she exited off the page. "Urgh…it's not like I'M the bad guy here! For your information you obnoxious brats, _He's_ the one making _me_ wait! Ugh….." Yumi yelled standing up from her seat getting worked up before realizing she wasn't exactly talking to anyone but herself.

Yumi took a moment to sit and cool down. She sighed realizing she couldn't really blame Shukichi for having overly obsessive fans like this. Apparently, that's the price one pays for being a celebrity. She decided to keep looking, so she clicked on a more legitimate source. It was the first news article she saw which read, _'Taiko-Meijin Becomes Sixth Title Holder in This Ground-Breaking Win!'_.

Yumi furiously scrolled as she began reading. Most of the article went right over her head since she didn't understand the first thing about shogi, but her attention was caught when she noticed a video link titled, _'Post Match Interview with Taiko-Meijin.'_ She clicked it and began watching.

" _So, Taiko-Meijin, what are your thoughts on today's match and your amazing achievement of claiming the sixth shogi title?"_ The interviewer asked him excitedly.

" _The match today was quite formidable. My opponent gave a very fierce and worthy game, and I barely came out on top."_ Shukichi said professionally.

" _Oh, don't be so modest! You are now the sixth title holder. Not even many of the professionals can claim that! You are a house hold name, and your fame only continues to rise with each success! Once you win the seventh title, there's no knowing how far you'll go!"_ The interviewer exclaimed.

Shukichi folded his arms and remained dignified. _"It isn't the fame that matters to me. Obtaining the sixth shogi title today was merely another stepping stone for me to achieve the thing that's truly the most important to me."_

" _The thing most important to you, huh? What might that be, the seventh title?"_ The interviewer elbowed Shukichi cheekily not realizing how invasive they were being.

" _No, that's not it.."_ Shukichi responded distractedly.

" _Oh? But for a shogi master such as yourself, what could possibly be more important than the seven shogi titles? What are you really trying to achieve then, Taiko Meijin?"_

Shukichi was silent for a moment as if hesitating to reveal his true intentions publicly. He sighed and then smiled softly. _"Well…there's someone who gave me the inspiration to do this in the first place. She means more to me than anything else in my life, and she truly is my reason for continuing each day. Even though she doesn't know exactly what I've been doing this whole time, just knowing someday I can tell her everything has really made this journey worth it."_ Shukichi said with a mild blush present on his face _._

" _Oh, you're doing it out of love then huh? That's so sweet, Taiko Meijin!"_ The interviewer said bashfully. _"But she doesn't know you're doing this though? How's that possible? You're all over the news?"_

Yumi's face fell bitterly feeling personally attacked by that comment. "Tsk…"

" _Hehe, she's quite the woman when it comes to being oblivious. I think it's cute she hasn't figured me out yet. Maybe if she's watching this, she'll finally know the truth."_ Shukichi looked at the camera and smiled knowingly.

Yumi's heart skipped a beat after hearing that. Did he plan for her to find out this way all along? She clicked off the interview without finishing it, but her curiosity didn't end there. The remainder of the night was spent researching and reading everything she could about Shukichi until her eyes felt so heavy she couldn't keep them open anymore.

* * *

 **Ahhh okay so tell me what you think! This one was hard because I wasn't sure if Shukichi should straight up tell her everything, but then I thought it'd be cute if she finds out about the envelope on her own. You'll see later! XD hehe.**


	5. Chapter 5

**And here's Chapter 5! Hope you guys are enjoying the story so far ^_^ I'm excited for this chapter because I just HAD to include the old man from file 945-947, or episode 849-850. XD Even though some people may find him annoying or view him as an unnecessary obstacle for Yumi and Chukichi's relationship, I REALLY loved him as a character XD He had good intentions. He just wanted to make sure Yumi was taking things seriously and was worthy of being Shukichi's waifu. XD Plus, in fairness, Yumi did throw away the envelope, so in a way you can't totally be mad at the old man lol.**

 **Anyways, poor Yumi, how is she going to handle this day? XD**

* * *

Before Yumi knew it, daylight was shining through her bedroom curtain, and she was lying in a puddle of drool still sitting at her desk. She softly opened her eyes and once realization hit, she jolted up from her chair.

"Ah! Shit! What time is it?" Yumi yelled as she grabbed her alarm clock next to her bed. It read 8:43AM.

"Damn it, I don't have much time!" Yumi quickly began getting dressed in her work uniform and ran out the door without putting much care into her physical appearance or even grabbing anything to eat. As she started running out her room while still buttoning up her blazer, a voice ominously called out to her from behind the corner.

"Hmph, there you are, ChaCha.."

Yumi stopped in her tracks and turned to see the source of the voice. It was her pesky landlord and former pit pocket, Koroku Hachitsuka.

"Oh, it's you." Yumi muttered irritably while placing her hands on her hips. "I told you a thousand times to stop calling me that! Ugh whatever, I'm going to be late for work, I can't bother with you now!-"

"So, you finally found out the truth about Master Haneda, huh? Sure took you long enough considering you're his 'girlfriend'. Pathetic." Koroku scoffed.

"! H-how did you know about that?" Yumi anxiously asked while approaching closer to the old man now intrigued by what he had to say.

"Heh. You think I was born yesterday? I saw you two together last night. I even stopped Master Haneda before he left to say a few things. I wouldn't want him having any regrets." Koroku grinned devilishly.

"Regrets? What the hell are you talking about?" Yumi yelled demandingly now practically cornering Koroku to the wall.

"What do you think I mean, ChaCha? I think It's pretty clear what I'm talking about. I don't want him to regret wasting all his efforts on someone who doesn't even want or deserve it."

Yumi took a step back. Koroku clearly struck a sensitive chord with that statement. She looked down and remembered that fangirl page that also said she didn't deserve Shukichi. Was it true? She didn't know what to think at this point.

"Tsk,…W-what do you care anyway, it's not your business! It's only his business and mine!" Yumi defensively shouted.

"He told me you knew everything about his shogi profession now, and that he'd wait for your response when he finally gets the seventh title. But are you really that determined to continue waiting for him, ChaCha? Even if It took him another year or two to collect his seven? Would you really want to spend the rest of your life with Master Haneda? Or do you only view him as an uncaring ex-boyfriend that isn't worth a moment of your time? You must decide now before you break his heart and waste his efforts. You must reach deep inside yourself and figure out your feelings now. I already know how determined he is to be with you, now prove how determined you are to be with him."

Yumi's eyes widened and she found herself stumbling on her words. "My response? ..Spend the rest of my life with him? I-…prove myself-…What the hell are you!-"

"Hmph. Now go, ChaCha. I've said what needed to be said. As a matter of fact, I've probably said too much. Just think about it." Koroku said as he began walking away leaving Yumi completely stunned and bewildered.

She stood for a moment before shaking her head and coming back to her senses. _"Ugh, whatever I can't think about this right now, I have to hurry and get to work!"_

* * *

Yumi raced up the stairs to HQ and stopped by the water cooler to catch her breath. She glanced at her watch. _"9:08. Shit, I'm super late.."_ She thought while rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Yumi-san! Ah, there you are! I thought you wouldn't show up! You look so tired is everything okay?" Naeko said with concern as she approached the visibly exhausted policewoman.

"Ah, hey Naeko..yeah I'm okay, I just had a really late night.. I'll be fine though!" Yumi forced a fake smile and thumbs up while trying her best to sound believable.

"Oh I see." Naeko said not looking too convinced. "Well if it'd help you out, I can drive today if you want?" Naeko offered politely. "You know, since today we're partners again!"

"Sure, that would be nice." Yumi said feeling genuinely relieved she wouldn't be alone today.

Yumi and Naeko began heading down to the garage where the mini patrol car was located before being stopped by a voice.

"Yumi-kun! May I have a word?" Inspector Megure yelled sternly from across the room with an intimidating furrowed brow.

"O-of course!" Yumi uttered uneasily while internally panicking _. "Uh oh, I'm screwed.."_

Naeko looked like she wanted to follow but was too scared to try. The inspector seemed really serious.

Yumi put a hand on Naeko's shoulder. "Just, head down without me! I'll catch up with you, okay?" Yumi winked with a semi defeated smile.

"S-sure!" Naeko smiled back.

Yumi felt her knees buckle and her lips quiver as she followed the inspector to his office. She'd never been late to work once in all the 5 years she'd worked as an officer for the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. Maybe the inspector would go easy on her and give her a warning just this once. Still, Yumi put a hand to her chest and felt her heart race. She was so scared for what he might say.

As they entered his office, Megure motioned Yumi to sit in the chair opposite his desk. Yumi sat down trying to keep her composure.

The inspector folded his hands and coughed before speaking, his anger seemed to subside. "Yumi-kun, is everything okay with you? You seem a bit off lately. I'm just wondering if you're in the right mental state these days."

Yumi perked up by his question and felt a bit of the anxiety go down. So, she wasn't in trouble? Was this really all he wanted?

"Oh, um. Yeah, I'm fine. What makes you say that, keibu?" Yumi said perplexed.

"Well, yesterday the reports you handed in weren't really written the way you normally write them. It's almost like you had a lot of aggression built up or something. Not to mention, you look completely terrible today, like you're running on little sleep and only had 10 minutes to get ready this morning."

Yumi chuckled spitefully to herself. _"Geez, no need to hit so close to home..."_ "Ah, yeah I suppose I had a late night last night, I'm really sorry about that." Yumi yawned while trying to appear attentive.

"Are you going to be okay patrolling today? It's just, you're one of my best traffic cops, so I'm willing to cut you some slack today. Do you need to take a personal day if it's going to affect your work performance? You've never been late to work before, and I'm just concerned about you."

Yumi stood up raising her hands defensively. "Oh, no there's really no need for that, keibu! I really am sorry for being late today. I'll make sure it never happens again! I'll try to get my personal matters sorted out, but I don't need a personal day, really it's fine!" Yumi tried her best to fix the situation since she really didn't want any special treatment. In fact, being at work was at least a good distraction for her. It sure beat going home and letting the whole Shukichi drama consume her any more than it already had.

"Well, if you're sure you're okay. Alright, make me proud, Yumi-kun!" The inspector patted Yumi on the back as she left his office.

"T-thank you, Megure-keibu." Yumi smiled weakly with relief.

As Yumi began heading back down to the garage to meet back up with Naeko, she mentally punished herself. _"Keep it together, Yumi-sama…Stop causing such a scene because of everything with Chukichi... We'll just deal with him later…I need to be determined only on work right now-"_

" _I already know how determined he is to be with you, now prove how determined you are to be with him."_

"EH!" Yumi slapped a hand over her mouth to silence herself as the words from Koroku echoed in her mind. She continued trudging to the patrol car. "Damn it, I really need to stop letting this- AHH!" Yumi screamed from surprise as Naeko was now giving her a concerned look from only a few inch distance from her face.

"Who are you talking to?"

"Geez! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?!" Yumi shouted without answering the question while clenching her chest still trying to shake off the scare.

"Sorry, it's just, your 'EH!' made me worry something happened to you."

"Oh, i-I see.." Yumi said calmly "Sorry to worry you, everything is fine. Let's just go now!" Yumi entered the passenger side of the patrol car persistently as if not wanting to discuss things any further.

Naeko tilted her head curiously while trying to read what was going through Yumi's mind today. She wanted to believe she knew her senior partner fairly well despite them only working together for about two months now. After all, they'd already gone out for karaoke a few times with some other members from their division, but clearly there was a lot more to Yumi than she thought.

Naeko sighed with a smile and decided to let it go before getting behind the wheel. "Alright, if you say so, Yumi-san."

* * *

There was a great deal of stillness between the two policewomen while driving around the streets of Tokyo as they waited for crimes to handle. Since nothing was coming through the patrol car's radio, Naeko began observing her surroundings to see if she could spot anything that seemed suspicious. Sometimes days like this where there wasn't much going on were nice, but it also really made things boring. Suddenly, Naeko was abruptly disrupted from her observations by a loud snore coming from Yumi. She glanced over at her exhausted partner who had begun to doze off.

"Yumi-san, you really shouldn't sleep while we're patrolling, you know." Naeko said in a calm yet authoritative voice.

Yumi yawned loudly and began rubbing her eyes. "Ahhh,….sorry, sorry. Has anything happened yet?"

"No..I've been looking, but nothing yet." Naeko said disappointedly.

Yumi watched her partner's efforts and felt bad she wasn't trying as hard as Naeko was, so she began looking out the window for crimes as well since it was her job after all. There was almost an awkward silence between them for a while. Yumi was sure Naeko had a lot of questions regarding what happened last night, but was too nervous to ask for fear of prying into her personal life too much. Yumi decided to turn the tables for a bit to sort of attract the attention off herself.

"Hey, you don't have to answer but, what ended up happening with you and Chiba-kun the other day?" Yumi asked almost out of nowhere in an attempt at easing the tense atmosphere.

"EHH?!" Naeko shrieked with a flustered blush consuming her face. Looks like this may have had the opposite effect than she'd hoped.

Yumi knew how incredibly shy Naeko got when it came to her feelings for Chiba, but she was hoping getting Naeko to confide in her would help her feel more comfortable with her feelings and opening up. After all, Yumi was the best at being both a matchmaker and a tease with these kinds of things. In this case, she definitely wanted to help her partner as best as she could, even if for right now it was more to distract herself from her own situation.

"I..um. Yesterday, I hid before he could catch up with me..I was so embarrassed I just couldn't face him. I didn't think he'd try to chase after me, so I just panicked." Naeko said with a distressed expression. "Why did he chase me anyways, did one of you tell him to do that? He usually never even gives me a passing glance."

Yumi's eye twitched nervously. "N-no, we didn't say anything! He asked us why you ran and if it was something he said, and we told him to ask you for himself, so technically we didn't force him to chase after you." Yumi awkwardly rubbed her neck while chuckling which probably made her look guilty even though theoretically she wasn't lying.

"Oh, I see. Agh, I just feel so terrible! I haven't faced him since then, so I don't know if he's going to even remember or if he's ever going to try confronting me about it again..What would you do in my situation, Yumi-san?" Naeko said with pleading eyes.

Yumi gulped hesitantly unsure of what response to give seeing as she wasn't exactly the best person to ask for advice given what she herself was currently going through. She thought for a moment as she tried to put herself in Naeko's shoes.

"Well, y-you know you like him, right?" Yumi asked almost stupidly since she already knew the answer.

Naeko nodded in embarrassment, her face still flushed.

"Well then, I..I think you should just talk to him.. He's never going to know you're the girl he liked back in your school days until you say somethin-"

"BUT I WANT HIM TO REMEMBER FOR HIMSELF!" Naeko shouted while Yumi stared at her mystified by her sudden raise of tone. "I… I mean, if he really still likes me like he said he did all those years ago, certainly he should know who I am by now...Plus, just talking to him is a lot easier said than done. I get so shy and stupid around him, so I can't blame him for not recognizing me.." Naeko sheepishly muttered while sinking in her seat sadly.

Yumi put a comforting hand on Naeko's shoulder. "Hey, it's okay. I'm sure he'll figure it out for himself soon enough. He may just be coming to terms with it himself. Like maybe subconsciously he suspects you are the girl from his memories, but he needs more proof before realizing it's you for sure. Besides, the two of you hardly see each other at work since we're in different departments. I mean, he doesn't even know your name. Chiba-kun can be a real dummy, but he really does have a good heart. Just keep waiting, I'm sure something good will come for you two eventually." Yumi smiled not realizing how close to home her last statement was.

Naeko smiled reassured by Yumi's words. "I know you're right, Yumi-san. I appreciate you giving me your support. You know, you can be really passionate and caring when you want to be." she added with a wink.

"Heh, what's that supposed to mean? That I'm _not_ usually caring?" Yumi chuckled.

"Well, no you are! I just meant you're really good with romance and bringing people together. Sato-san told me a lot about how you schemed around for her and Takagi-san before they officially became a couple." She beamed as she praised Yumi.

Yumi's face fell. "Eh.. I'm not really as good with romance as I've made you think. I just like giving other's a friendly push when they need it and trust me; Miwako and Takagi-kun _really_ needed it a lot back then. Sometimes it can be really annoying to watch people make things complicated for themselves, even though I have no right to talk on that.." Yumi said without thinking.

"What do you mean by that, Yumi-san?" Naeko asked now intrigued.

Yumi looked at Naeko's intent expression and knew she painted herself in a corner. She couldn't come back from that statement. She knew Naeko would want to know even though she wanted so desperately to distract herself from it till she got off work. Well, since they were opening up, maybe it would help to get a third party opinion. She sighed for a moment and cleared her throat.

"Well, erm. I had a boyfriend once before, but he always- well I guess we both mutually made things complicated for ourselves. In fact, he's the reason I've been a bit off today. It's kind of a long story and I don't want to bother you with it so-"

"Yumi-san." Naeko interjected. "You're not a bother to me. I understand if you don't want to tell me all of it, but with how slow things are today, you can talk to me. It might actually help you. Besides, we're partners! And I'm a good listener." Naeko smiled compassionately.

Yumi smiled halfheartedly. "Alright, well buckle up then, cause this is kind of a long ride."

...

* * *

"EEEHHHH! YOUR BOYFRIEND IS TAIKO-MEIJIN!?""" Naeko shouted so loudly Yumi was pretty sure all of Tokyo could hear her.

"Shh, not so loud!" Yumi put a hand on Naeko's mouth to silence her while they were halted at a traffic light and gaining some attention from nearby bystanders. "But, yeah…" Yumi nodded nonchalantly as she finally finished telling the whole story. "To be honest, I didn't even know who that was until I googled it." Yumi added honestly while twiddling her fingers embarrassedly.

"Wait so let me get this straight, you dated Taiko-Meijin….for several years..and had no idea he was famous?!"

"Turns out." Yumi said with a wry smile.

"So, what are you going to do, Yumi-san?! It sounds like he wants to marry you!" Naeko blushed encouragingly.

"Eh? 'Marry me'? Hah that might be a bit much." Yumi laughed while waving her hand dismissively at Naeko's comment.

"I mean, what else could be in that envelope then? If he wants you to wait for him till he gets the seventh title, what else could he have to say to you once he confronts you with all of them? He'd probably propose to you right then and there! That would be so romantic!" Naeko said with dreamy eyes.

All of a sudden, the facts were beginning to hit Yumi like a ton of bricks. That explanation actually made so much sense. She'd never really thought of what the envelope could contain since she just planned on ripping it in front of his face one of these days, but truly what else could it be? She began reminiscing some of the things said to her to see if any of it hinted towards marriage.

...

" _You said whoever Tehno's future bride is would feel like such a queen being with a champion like him, so I made it my goal to make you feel the same."_

" _Now that you know the truth about my shogi profession and the seven titles I'm trying to collect, it shouldn't be too hard to figure out what the envelope might contain."_

" _Even if It took him another year or two to collect his seven? Would you really want to spend the rest of your life with Master Haneda?"_

… _.._

"OH MY GOD CHUKICHI WANTS TO MARRY ME." Yumi exclaimed as if this was the first time that revelation ever entered her mind.

Naeko clasped her hands together excitedly. "Oh, Yumi-san, this is wonderful!"

"B-but..I don't know! If he's famous maybe there's plenty of other girls on his radar, m-maybe I should just bail now and take that personal day the inspector offered me after all-I need to go home, open the envelope, confront Chukichi and then-!"

"Yumi-san, you're being hysterical you can't do that now!" Naeko grabbed Yumi's arm stopping her from exiting the car. "You need to calm down for a minute. Do you really think he'd have other girls after everything you just told me? He really seems devoted to you and only you."

Yumi blushed. "I..I guess so."

"So, what are you going to do? Are you going to tell him you figured it all out, or are you just going to wait till he proposes to you first?" Naeko asked with a cheeky grin.

"I really don't know! I don't want to rush things, especially since I only just found this all out yesterday. Plus, now that I know he's rich and famous I don't want him to think I only want to get back together for that reason." Yumi looked down with a guilt-ridden face.

"Well you dated him for all those years not knowing he was rich and famous, so surely he knows you wouldn't be so shallow." Naeko smiled assuredly.

"Yeah…well maybe I'll try to schedule a meet up with him so we can talk more about things. I just have a lot to think about, so I may just take my time." Yumi said in a semi distracted voice.

"If that's what you think is for the best." Naeko smiled. "Well, Yumi-san, it looks like we both just have to wait on our men to hurry up already!" Naeko laughed while playfully elbowing Yumi.

"Hehe, yeah." Yumi said with yet another forced smile while her mind wandered again.

" _If it's true that Chukichi wants to marry me, should we..get back together? Do I want that right now? Would it seem too much like I'm getting back with him for selfish reasons? Gahhh god dammit, Yumi-sama..Why can't you just make things simple for yourself."_

* * *

 **Hehe okay that's the end of this one! XD Hope you enjoyed it! Also, hope you Chiba x Naeko shippers out there are happy with the little development I tried including for them. In all seriousness I do lowkey ship them despite being way deeper into Yumi x Shukichi and Takagi x Sato. XD Especially after file 1017, I am genuinely excited to see what's in store for them! ^_^**

 **Ratings definitely give me motivation to continue! Also, any feedback on what I can improve on is welcome! Thank you!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Here's chapter 6! Sorry this fanfic is getting kinda long, ^_^; I personally enjoy reading longer fanfics that are usually at least 10k+ words to truly get engaged in the story, so I try to make mine as developed and fleshed out as I can! Anyways, here we go with the next one! :D**

* * *

Finally, after 8 hours that seemed never-ending, Yumi and Naeko were finished patrolling for the day. They only had a few minor traffic violators to deal with, so now they were heading up to HQ to file their reports. By the time they finished, Yumi was at her absolute limit. Her exhaustion and hunger were ultimately all caught up to her. Despite Naeko offering to pay for Yumi during their lunch break since she'd accidentally forgotten her purse at home, Yumi insisted she was fine, but now she couldn't deny it anymore. She was lightheaded, starving, and felt at any moment she'd collapse.

After several minutes of sitting at her desk, Yumi tried to hold her head up as she filed her reports. Despite her best efforts, her body just couldn't fight the urge to fall asleep any longer.

She passed out.

…..

* * *

"mi! …Yu…. umi?! ….YUMI!"

"…eh?" Yumi uttered snapping out of her daze with half her face covered in drool as she awoke to someone shaking her and calling her name desperately. It was her best friend, Miwako Sato.

"Ah! M-Miwako! S-sorry! I was just- ."

"Yumi, Miike-chan told me a little bit about it. She said you barely slept last night and haven't had a thing to eat all day. Geez, you really need to take better care of yourself, you know? We all were really worried about you. Not to mention you've been passed out for about an hour and a half now. The inspector told us all to just let you sleep at your desk, but now it's getting too late, so I offered to take you home."

Yumi looked at Sato in disbelief. Could she really have actually passed out that long with everybody watching and worrying? She felt terrible.

"Oh my gosh, Miwako I'm so sorry. I just had a really late night last night and-"

"Yumi, it's okay don't apologize. I just want to make sure you're okay. How about we go out somewhere and get you something to eat?" Sato said with an enthusiastic wink.

Yumi wiped the drool from her face. "If you don't mind, I'm really tired and I don't think I'm up for going- hey- wait where's Takagi-kun?" Yumi interrupted herself mid-sentence and looked around instinctively since she was used to dinner dates being with couples.

Sato smiled and folded her arms. "Ah, I told him to go home without me. I figured maybe this would be more comfortable for you if it was a girl's only thing."

Yumi chuckled. "Say, that doesn't happen to have anything to do with the fact I didn't want to be a part of your double date the other day does it?"

Sato folded her hands together while pleading. "M-maybe! I just didn't want you to say no! Anyways, please will you come? I'll cover you this time!"

For some reason Yumi couldn't shake the feeling that Naeko told Sato all about the drama with Shukichi. Maybe that was why Sato seemed so adamant on taking her out for dinner. Then again, Sato was her best friend after all, so she may have just been genuinely worried since it was true that she really hadn't had a thing all day.

"Alright, Miwako I'll go." Yumi smiled knowing she had no choice either way.

* * *

Yumi and Sato arrived at the usual restaurant that most of their circle of friends amongst the police force would go to after work. Yumi felt a bit refreshed from her nap earlier, so she wasn't as tired as she'd been all day. Plus, now that she was finally getting something to eat, she definitely felt more alert and functioning. After a while, Yumi noticed Sato occasionally glancing at her with a not so subtle expression, as if she really wanted to address the obvious.

"So, how much did Naeko tell you?" Yumi cut to the chase before Sato got a chance.

"Eh. W-what do you mean? She told me-"

"It's okay if you're curious, you're my best friend. I was planning on confiding in you about it anyways, I just didn't want to repeat myself if she told you everything already." Yumi said with a soft smile.

Sato's face of uncertainty quickly disappeared and was now overcome with enthusiasm. "Alright, I confess she told me! Your boyfriend is Taiko-Meijin! I can't believe it Yumi! I remember when you two first started dating back when we were in college! Who would've thought he was _Taiko-Meijin_ of all people!"

Yumi's eyes opened wide. "W-wait a minute, did you know about that?"

Sato looked at Yumi with a puzzled expression. "No, I promise, I really had no idea! I mean, I know who Taiko-Meijin is, but I had no idea he was your boyfriend. I mean, after all you only ever called him 'Chukichi'. How was I to know?"

Yumi sighed in relief and tried to push back her defensive demeanor. "Oh, okay. I wasn't blaming you or anything, I just didn't know if you knew.."

"It's okay, Yumi I understand. So, what are you going to do? Do you think you're going to take him back?"

Yumi sighed with a hesitant expression and swallowed as she fought the urge to make excuses like she normally would.

"To tell you the truth, I've always wanted to get back together with Chukichi."

"Aw, Yumi!" Sato overenthusiastically exclaimed with her hands on her cheeks in fangirl-like fashion.

"B-but, it's so hard to put into words! Like, he's so different from the man I thought I loved back then. It's like he kept his true self a secret to me all those years and I'm only now getting to see the real him. Is it too much of a coincidence if I take him back now? Now that I know he's famous I mean. He's not going to think I only took him back because-"

"Yumi. I know you. You really have been faithful to him this whole time. You had so many opportunities to move on, but yet you never did. You may try to deny it, but I've noticed. Anytime anyone hit on you during karaoke or on the job, you never gave the idea of finding a new boyfriend a moment's thought. Haneda-san has been your only serious boyfriend in all the years I've known you, and despite all the single parties, you stayed true to him." Sato smiled knowingly.

Yumi blushed profusely. Was it that obvious? Then again Sato has been her best friend since they were children. She really knew how to read Yumi like the back of her hand.

"Yeah..well it was hard for me because towards the end of our relationship I just felt so ignored and uncared about, but I guess at least now I know why he was always so busy. I just hope he'll have time for me." Yumi uttered with a hint of hurt in her eyes.

Sato placed a hand on Yumi's shoulder in reassurance. "Yumi, just because he's busy doesn't mean he ever meant to ignore you. If anything, he's been busy because of how desperately he wants to be with you. If his resolve was to win the seven shogi titles to impress you, then doesn't that mean he never really ignored you all these years?" Sato smiled hoping her words would be effective.

Yumi felt her heart flutter. She'd never thought of it that way. "I..I suppose you have a point. Gah, that does it! I'm going to call him right now!" Yumi indecisively pulled out her smartphone and began dialing Shukichi's number without even formulating an idea of what she'd say.

Sato retracted her arm from Yumi's shoulder "W-wait, Yumi do you even know what you're-"

It was too late; the phone had begun ringing. It rang several times before going to voicemail.

" _Hello, you've reached Shukichi Haneda. I'm sorry I couldn't come to the phone. Please leave a message." *beep*_

"CHUKICHI! Ah, I-I mean, you bald headed rat you! I..I've done some thinking and-" she paused to look at Sato who shrugged in confusion unsure of what to say. "I..um. I think we should.." She started to feel anxious. Now that she was thinking a bit clearer, this definitely wasn't the kind of thing to say over the phone. Why did she have to jump into these kinds of situations with an empty head? "D-DAMMIT LEARN HOW TO PICK UP YOUR PHONE!" Yumi shouted before abruptly hanging up.

Well that was a major fucking disaster.

Sato's jaw dropped in disbelief. "Yumi! What were you thinking?! Why did you do that?!"

"I don't know! I wasn't thinking!" Yumi shouted while throwing her phone in her purse. "I just want to talk to him about all this, but I'm so used to being ignored anyways, so I felt calling was the only way to do it, but of course he doesn't even have the time to answer!" Yumi pouted.

Sato lowered her tone and tried to be rational. "Don't take it so much to heart, Yumi. It's possible he's playing a game right now or doing an interview. I'm sure he has his reasons. Regardless, now you've made a fool of yourself for when he hears your message." She couldn't help but bluntly mention that fact.

Yumi face palmed and hit her head on the table. "Dammit, I'm so stupid. I just don't even know what to do anymore."

Sato put her hand on Yumi's chin and pulled her up. "Yumi, I think you just need to give yourself time."

"Time?" Yumi repeated.

"Yeah, you're letting everything from one night consume you to the point you're not thinking clearly or taking care of yourself. You need to just think things through and let it take its course. I know everything will work out for you in the end, but you need to let things happen naturally. That's how things went for Takagi-kun and I. I'm really happy we took our time. I wouldn't change that for the world. I think you need to do the same, Yumi." Sato smiled softly.

Yumi smiled and regained her posture. "Yeah, you're right..Ah, but what should I do if he calls me back?" She asked now feeling anxious again.

"Do what feels right to you, Yumi. It's your life and you need to do what's best for you."

"Alright, I'll try." Yumi said with a level of uncertainty.

* * *

 **Okay and that's chapter 6! Sorry if this chapter is kinda redundant, but I really love Yumi and Sato's friendship, so I felt like Sato needed to be included in helping Yumi out even if it may be rehashing what Yumi and Naeko talked about. I do like Yumi and Naeko's friendship too, but still Sato is Yumi's best friend. XD lol. Any review are deeply appreciated! Thanks! :D I'll try to upload a new chapter soon!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Here's chapter 7! Sorry it took me a few months to update, but life has been keeping me busy. In other news, I have made history! I discovered if you type "Yumi and Shukichi" into Google images, "fangirlforlife23" (which is my youtube and tumblr username) is like the first tag that shows up, which further proves that I am basically Yumi and Shukichi's #1 fan XD This fact both amazes and depresses me. Lol. I've considered changing my username to fangirlforlife23 here on since I use it for almost everything else, but I've been xAstroBoyx since I made my account back in 2009 and I don't wanna change it cause I'm nostalgic :P  
**

 **Anyways, no more delays, time for the drama and suspense to continue! XD**

* * *

After finishing up at the restaurant, Sato insisted on making sure Yumi was truly okay before dropping her off at apartment.

"Please take care of yourself, and if Haneda-san calls you back, just do what your instincts tell you, okay? We all just want what's best for you, Yumi." Sato smiled with a hint of worry in her voice.

"I will. Thanks for tonight, Miwako. I think I really needed this." Yumi smiled sincerely.

"Of course, anytime! We need to do dinner dates after work more often! Now promise me you'll get a good nights rest tonight, okay?" Sato affirmed as she began walking down the stairs back to her car.

Yumi smirked in her usual teasing fashion unable to let the opportunity to mess with her best friend slide. "Fine Miwako, but only If _you_ promise to get a good nights sleep yourself since you've had your fair share of late nights these days." She grinned mischievously.

Sato blinked and her face heated red from embarrassment. "I.."

Yumi waved playfully and winked before closing the door. "Say hi to Takagi-kun for me."

* * *

Yumi kicked off her shoes and headed to her living room. She picked up the remote and turned on the TV without even giving it a moment's thought. The background noise was all she needed, so it didn't even matter what was playing.

She smiled as she reflected on everything Naeko and Sato did for her, and even the inspector for going easy on her today. They truly were just looking out for her own wellbeing, and she wanted to make it up to them by actually trying to take their advice.

Yumi entered the bathroom and got the water going for a nice hot bath. That was usually the ticket to soothe her stress when the occasion called for it.

After preparing the bath water, Yumi grabbed a fashion magazine off her table. She had a monthly subscription and hadn't read the latest one that arrived in the mail yesterday, so she figured it would make for some good reading to distract herself.

While she was pacing around her kitchen trying to find other distractions, her eyes glanced over at the picture frame that was still face down from Shukichi's visit the previous night. She exhaled a somber sigh and resisted the urge to look at it.

" _C'mon, Yumi-sama you're trying to avoid thinking of him and focus on yourself right now. Just get in the tub, read your damn magazine and relax. You know everyone's right about you, you need this."_ She mentally ordered herself.

After several moments, the bathtub was all filled up, the TV was loud enough for her to enjoy listening to, and the latest fashion magazine was in her hand ready to read. Everything was perfect, and she finally allowed her mind to be at ease.

* * *

Yumi made it all the way up to page 41 of her magazine by the time she realized how late it was getting. Usually she preferred just skimming and looking at the pictures as opposed to actually reading the long articles since she mainly bought the magazines to find new styles of clothes she could see herself wearing since she was quite materialistic, but tonight she needed an excuse to let anything else occupy her thoughts.

She set the magazine down the side of the bathtub and took a moment to just let her hair flow in the water and let out a sigh of relief. There were so many thoughts racing through her mind throughout the day, but now it felt like all her burdens were being lifted and she could finally relax.

Normally she didn't stay in this long, but today was a self-care day and she didn't care. Despite how tired she'd been all day, the hot bath really worked wonders and made her feel more refreshed. She didn't want to get out. It felt like she could fall asleep like this is she could.

 _~ Bzzzzz ~_

All of a sudden, the inevitable sound of Yumi's phone ringing snapped her from her escape from reality.

"D-dammit.." Yumi muttered through her teeth as she forced herself out of the tub and grabbed a towel. She entered her kitchen where her phone was sitting, and she didn't even have to look at the name to know who was calling.

After debating letting it go to voicemail since she promised Sato she'd give it time, she realized she'd be a hypocrite not to answer since she screamed at Shukichi for doing the exact same thing in the voicemail she'd impulsively left him earlier.

" _Well..Miwako did also tell me to follow my instincts, and.. ugh damn it!"_ Yumi panicked as she realized time was ticking and accepted the call with only a second to spare.

"Y-Yumi-san?" Shukichi asked with uncertainty since he wasn't sure if she'd answered.

"Yes?" Yumi uttered restlessly as she adjusted the towel.

"I'm just erm, returning your call from earlier." Shukichi spoke politely yet also with a hint of worry since he felt unsure of what she wanted to discuss in the voicemail. "You sound a little preoccupied, I hope this isn't a bad time."

Yumi mentally scoffed at Shukichi's interruption, but then felt a mischievous smirk form on her face as she glanced down at her current physical state. "Oh, of course this isn't a bad time, I'm just standing half naked with my hair dripping wet all over my kitchen floor from the bath I was forced away from." She said flirtatiously to get a reaction out of him

Yumi could practically hear the blood dripping from Shukichi's nose from the flush in his voice. "A-Ah, is that so? Excuse me then, I can call back another-"

"No, no it's fine I'm already out." Yumi interjected and then hesitated to continue since she realized she had to explain herself from earlier.

"Listen, Chukichi, about that message I left.." Yumi began not exactly knowing where she was going with it. Shukichi perked his head up from the sudden change in Yumi's tone and listened intently.

"Today was a bit of a rough day for me, and I was out with Miwako when I called you, and I sort of acted on adrenaline without really thinking it through. Everyone seems to be concerned for me and thinking I need to take some time for myself, so that's what I am attempting to do but, w-whatever it doesn't matter anyway. I'm sorry to have bothered you with my message, it's nothing." she said with slight hurt in the last few words.

There was a brief silence as Shukichi took in what she said. He tried to be careful in phrasing his response. "Yumi-san, I'm sorry I've complicated things for you. I know it's been a lot to take in, and I wish I could fix everything I've done over the years and prevent myself from keeping secrets from you. I respect if you need some more time to-.

"That's just it, I don't need anymore time!" Yumi blurted out realizing it was now or never.

"What do you mean, Yumi-tan?" he asked intrigued by what she'd meant by that.

"Look, I..I can't say it over the phone..maybe you should just come over.." Yumi put a hand over her face feeling like she failed at keeping her word. _"Well, Miwako did tell me to follow my instincts and do what I think is best, so in a way I'm not going back on it. It's time to stop with the games and handle this like adults."_ Yumi mentally prepared herself.

Shukichi's eyes lit up eagerly but he quickly became a stuttering mess when realization hit. "O-okay Yumi-tan, I can be there as soon as possibly- I mean, as soon as possible!"

Yumi raised an eyebrow. "Why are you acting all weird?" Then she looked down at herself and remembered she told him she was basically naked. "Oh, no need to be all hot and bothered, Chukichi, I'll get dressed." She added playfully.

Before hanging up, she could tell her words affected him the way she wanted. "O-okay, s-see you soon, Yumi-tan!" He quickly said with a furious blush.

Yumi smirked as she hung up. _"You haven't lost your touch, Yumi-sama."_

* * *

 **Alright we're almost at the end! I'll probably add an epilogue after chapter 8, I'm not 100% sure. XD Also I'm sorry, I'm probably gonna add some lemon next chapter, or at least have it implied, I'm open to suggestions. Haha. As always, I'm sorry if my pacing isn't the best or if certain things seem rushed/forced. I really love drama XD Please review! I'd love to hear it!**


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